Post election analysis is a favorite American past time. For any party that loses an election, the questions rightfully center on which voting blocs they need to reach for the next election. For Republicans nationally and especially in California, that discussion must be focused on Latinos.

Republicans must find a better connection with Latino voters if they want to be competitive in the years to come. They can do it by breaking the border gridlock that is benefiting the Democrats and hurting Latinos and the Nation. To do that, they need to start working cooperatively with Latinos by adding safety to the border security question.

The Republican ticket won approximately 23% of the Latino vote this past Presidential election. That is far below the 35% of the vote President George W. Bush won in the 2000 election. That latter figure is a good indication of how Republicans could perform in the near term with Latino voters. If Republicans did perform that well with Latino voters, they would win Presidential elections.

Republicans have known for years why. Latino voters, by and large, are closer to Republicans than Democrats on the social issues. Beyond those issues, Latino voters care deeply about small business issues. For instance, in places like California, Latino women are the fastest growing small business demographic. In addition to that, polling by Univision Television, indicates that Latino voters are just as, if not more, concerned by the economic, health care and education issues as immigration issues.

Given those areas of mutual concern with the Republican Party, why do Republicans do so comparatively worse than the Democrats nationally and in California? While there are several factors, there is no question that many Latino’s impressions of the Republican Party is dominated by the immigration issue and negatively so for Republicans - especially in California. One key to future voting patterns fore Republicans will be to fashion cooperative solutions on this issue.

Keep in mind that the current national immigration debate dynamic favors Democrats. The illegal immigration stalemate casts Republicans in a bad light and wins votes for Democrats. Quite plainly, Democrats are not motivated to change that dynamic.

Republicans must have that motivation and must act on it. They shouldn't, however, cast their fate in search of a so-called “comprehensive” legislative solution. Given the current vitriol on the subject, building a workable consensus on comprehensive immigration reform is not going to happen. What is more likely is that Democrats will use the process to bludgeon Republicans even more in the eyes of Latino voters.

What Republicans need is a good first step – a first step towards dealing with the issue, a first step toward working with Latinos and a first step toward to gaining large numbers of Latino votes. Here is that first step.

First, the key to changing the existing dynamic is to understand one more potential area of agreement between Republicans and Latinos. Latinos care deeply about the level of border violence. The violence along the U.S./Mexican border is staggering. From drug lords, to murder, to rape and human trafficking, the violence along the border, done by a terrible few, rivals lawless borders around the world where we send in troops and humanitarian aid.

Latinos don’t want their countryman and women subjected to this violence. No one would. They rightfully question why we are not more concerned about border violence along the U.S./Mexican border. When Latinos are approached about border violence in a cooperative fashion, they want a solution.

Plan and simple, Republicans need to work with Latinos to achieve border safety and security. By elevating the safety issue on par with the security issue, Republicans can bring Latino’s to the table on bringing security to the border. That means actually sitting down with Latino leaders in America, listening to their concerns and working out a solution to the issue. Republicans should also work to elevate Latino leaders who are strong on this issue.

In short, Republicans need to realize the Democrat leaders like the current dynamic that hurts Republicans. They should stop trying to hit a five run homer on immigration. Instead, they should build a strong bridge with Latinos on Republicans on an issue perceived as Republicans’ greatest weakness.

The outcome of that process can be a solution that meets Latino’s concerns for safety and the Nation's concerns for border security. It also can start to change the existing dynamic in minority relations for Republicans everywhere and in California in particular. It is not a question of a way, it is a question of will.

My latest book, The Divided Era, can be found on Amazon. Pls follow me on Twitter @tomdelbeccaro. I am the former Chairman of the CA Republican Party and I am a former candidate for the U.S. Senate seat in California. I am the Publisher of PoliticalVanguard.com, author of T...